John 18:7-11

“Therefore He again asked them, ‘Whom do you seek?’ And they said, ‘Jesus the Nazarene.’ Jesus answered, ‘I told you that I am He, so if you seek Me, let these go their way…Simon Peter then, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear…So Jesus said to Peter, ‘Put the sword into the sheath; the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?’”

It’s a good question to ask, nearly every day. Am I willing to drink the cup the Father has ordained for me? The Bible and the history of God’s people seems, at one level, to be simply a tale of two cups. There’s the cup of our own choice, driven by our lusts, fears, pride, anger, idolatry, hatred, and pain. And then there is the cup of God’s choosing for our lives. The Father’s cup always has elements in it that we wouldn’t choose of our own free will, always little flavors that run counter to our raw desires and personalities. But that’s a good thing of course, because it’s those raw desires, tainted as they are by sin, that need to die. And it seems that the cup of the Father’s Will is just the ticket to poison those destructive desires and flavors, so that REAL LIFE can be found.

The cup God’s will wasn’t a pleasant cup for Jesus, but after having it out with God just moments earlier, Jesus conclusions were settled; there would be but one will that night: the will of the Father. Am I wrestling with God, drinking the cup of His will, or have I surrendered to the poisons of my own dark choices? This week, Christ’s example shines clear: wrestle – pray – and move into the night determined to carry out the will of the Father.